Mount Rainier National Park

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette
Mount Rainier, also know as Mt. Takoma, is one of several national parks in Washington. Standing at 14,410 feet above sea level, Mount Rainier is view by most visitors from the two lane road which winds through the park or from several trails offering a scenic view of the iconic mountain. Mt. Rainier is an active volcano, and the most glaciated peak in the contiguous U.S.A., spawning six major rivers.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette
The bridge and road crosses the Nisqually river with the southern end of the Nisqually Glacier above it. Normally the river bed is nearly full, however, during the summer of 2015 when the photo was taken, the region was experiencing a drought. There was very little snow in the mountains the previous winter resulting in very little melt off during the summer.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette
A waterfall flows from a glacier as seen from the Paradise Park Trail above the Henry M. Jackson memorial Visitor Center at Mt. Rainier National Park.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette
A waterfall flows from a glacier as seen from the Paradise Park Trail above the Henry M. Jackson memorial Visitor Center at Mt. Rainier National Park.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette
Christine Falls is seen with the roadway bridge and VanTrump Creek in the Mt. Rainier National Park.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette
A yellow-bellied marmot basks in the sun on a rock near the Paradise Park Trail above the Henry M. Jackson memorial Visitor Center at Mt. Rainier National Park. Marmots are related to woodchucks and groundhogs.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette
Mount Rainier, also know as Mt. Takoma, is one of several national parks in Washington. Standing at 14,410 feet above sea level, Mount Rainier is viewed by most visitors from the two lane road which winds through the park or from several trails offering a scenic view of the iconic mountain. Mt. Rainier is an active volcano, and the most glaciated peak in the contiguous U.S.A., spawning six major rivers.